A close-up look at NYC education policy, politics,and the people who have been, are now, or will be affected by acts of corruption and fraud. ATR CONNECT assists individuals who suddenly find themselves in the ATR ("Absent Teacher Reserve") pool and are the "new" rubber roomers, and re-assigned. The terms "rubber room" and "ATR" mean that you or any person has been targeted for removal from your job. A "Rubber Room" is not a place, but a process.

Thursday, July 7, 2016

It is most certainly amazing to see the UFT befuddled about what to do with the complete mess they and the DOE have made in protecting the rights of Absent Teacher Reserves, or ATRs. At least they got rid of the one-day termination hearing.

Hey, something is a little better than nothing! A smidgen better? I agree, the ATR situation needs a total overhaul.

It
has been confirmed from the UFT that "There is no new agreement" on
Absent Teacher Reserves concerning extending the disastrous 2014 ATR
contractual provisions (Rule 11A). Therefore, Rule 11A has expired and Article 17B Rule 11B takes
over. We first reported on this on Saturday.

Rule 11B is the 2011 ATR agreement. It includes weekly rotation but does not
include one day rapid fire termination hearings for ATRs or automatic
resignations if an ATR misses two interviews or second class status for an ATR
who survived a termination hearing. It is a step up.

Here is Rule 11B in its entirety from the contract:

B.
Excessed Employees/ATRs

General
Provisions

Except
as expressly provided herein, this Rule 11(B) shall not in any way constitute a
modification of, limitation on or a waiver of any other provision of this
Agreement or past practice.

For
purposes of this Rule 11(B) the term “Excessed Employee” shall refer to all
UFT-represented employees that have been excessed, including Excessed Employees
that have been sent to a school to be considered for placement and not selected
(an “ATR”). For employees that do not have licenses, the term “license”
as used herein shall mean the appropriate title.

Consideration
for Placement of Excessed Employees

An
Excessed Employee/ATR, upon notification of being excessed, shall be required
to register on the Open Market System for purposes of providing updated contact
information. Failure to so register shall eliminate the DOE’s obligation
as to that Excessed Employee/ATR under this Rule 11(B).

Employees
excessed after the execution of this Agreement shall be sent to schools for
consideration for placement as follows:

(1)
When one or more vacancies occur, the DOE shall send the most senior Excessed
Employee in the district/superintendency with the appropriate license to the
school(s) for consideration for placement, except that the DOE shall not be
required to send Excessed Employees who have already been sent to a school for
consideration for placement pursuant to this paragraph.

(2) An Excessed Employee sent to a school for consideration for placement
shall meet with a Principal or Assistant Principal. For non-school based
employees, the term “Principal or Assistant Principal” shall refer to the
equivalent supervisory title.

(3) If the Principal denies the placement, and the vacancy remains, the
DOE shall send a second Excessed Employee in the district/superintendency with
the appropriate license to be considered for placement. Such Excessed
Employee shall be the most senior in the district/superintendency who has not
previously been sent for consideration for placement. No school shall be
required to consider for placement more than two (2) excessed employees in a
term. For purposes of this Agreement, a “term” shall be from September to
January 31 or February 1 through of the end of the school year.

(4) If the DOE notifies an Excessed Employee of the school he or she is
being sent to for consideration for placement before the school year begins,
he/she may choose to meet with the supervisor before the school year begins if
a mutually agreeable time can be arranged. The DOE shall inform Excessed
Employees that are notified subsequent to the start of the school year as soon
thereafter as reasonably possible of the school to which he/she is being sent
for consideration for placement.

(5) Notwithstanding the above, an Excessed Employee who has not been sent
for consideration for placement shall be sent for consideration for placement
prior to an Excessed Employee with the same license who has been excessed in a
subsequent term, even if the subsequently excessed employee has more
seniority.

(6) No release by an Excessed Employee’s current Principal/Supervisor
shall be required if a Principal/Supervisor accepts the Excessed Employee for
placement.

(7) The Principal or Assistant Principal shall meet with the Excessed
Employee/ATR for consideration for placement during the regular work day.
No supervisor shall prevent the Excessed Employee/ATR from attending such
meetings. If Excessed Employees/ATRs fail to appear at a school for
consideration for placement when properly notified, the DOE shall have fulfilled
its obligation to the Excessed Employee/ATR under this section, except if the
Excessed Employee/ATR has a reasonable excuse. If reasonably possible, the
Excessed Employee/ATR shall notify the Principal of his/her inability to
attend.

All
employees currently in excess status shall be sent, in seniority order, to
schools in their district/superintendency for consideration for placement in
vacancies in their license area prior to any employee excessed after the date
of this Agreement. Employees who are sent to a school for consideration
for placement pursuant to this Rule 11(B)(3) shall count for purposes of the
provision in Rule 11(B)(2)(b)(3) limiting the number of Excessed Employees that
a school must consider for placement to two (2) per term.

Leaves
and Long Term Absences

The
Principal shall select an appropriately licensed Excessed Employee/ATR in the
district/superintendency, if any such employee exists, to fill all leaves and
long-term absences. The Principal retains the right to remove an Excessed
Employee/ATR from the filling of such leaves or long-term absences at any time
and replace him or her with another appropriately licensed Excessed
Employee/ATR. In the event that only one (1) Excessed Employee/ATR in a
license area in a district/superintendency is available, the Joint Oversight
Committee created in Rule 11(B)(7) shall address the issue.

As
used in this Rule 11(B)(3), the definition of “long term absences” shall be
absences of longer than twenty-nine (29) work days.

Vacancies

After
September 15th an appropriately licensed Excessed Employee/ATR in the
district/superintendency shall be temporarily utilized in a vacancy until the
Principal makes a final determination whether to keep the employee in the
position. An Excessed Employee/ATR that is filling a leave or long term
absence may decline to be moved to or utilized in a vacancy. If the
school has not yet considered two Excessed Employees/ATRs pursuant to Rule
11(B)(2)(b)(3), it shall do so as soon as possible so long as the vacancy
exists.

If
a Principal decides not to continue to utilize an Excessed Employee/ATR in the
assignment, another Excessed Employee/ATR shall be utilized pursuant to the
terms of this Section 4, if such an employee exists, beginning no later than
the first work day of the following work week, except where three Excessed
Employees/ATRs have been utilized or declined to be utilized in that
vacancy. From the day the Principal decides not to continue to utilize a
particular Excessed Employee/ATR until the first workday of the following week,
the Principal may utilize a substitute.

At
the end of the school year in which the temporary utilization occurs, if both
the Principal and the Excessed Employee/ATR agree in writing, the employee
shall be appointed to fill the vacancy in the school and take his/her rightful
place in seniority order. If the employee or Principal do not wish the
assignment to continue, the employee shall remain an ATR in their
district/superintendency in a different school.

An
employee that is temporarily utilized in a school shall maintain all of his/her
contractual rights.

The
prohibition against moving an Excessed Employee/ATR during a week pursuant to
Rule 11(B)(5)(b) below shall not apply to an Excessed Employee/ATR who agrees
to be moved to a vacancy pursuant to this Rule
11(B)(4).

Assignment
of Excessed Employees

To
the maximum extent possible, as provided herein, an Excessed Employee/ATR shall
be used to cover for a UFT-represented employee in his/her title who is absent,
prior to the employment of a substitute or paying another employee in the
school to cover a class or classes (or other appropriate
assignments). If the Principal determines for a legitimate
educational reason that it is unacceptable to allow the excessed employee/ATR
to continue to cover a particular position, the principal may employ a substitute
for the remainder of the work week. The Principal shall not be permitted
to hire a substitute beginning with the first work day of the following work
week for the same absence, unless no Excessed Employee/ATR is
available.

An
Excessed Employee/ATR shall be assigned to a school within his/her
district/superintendency for no less than a week, but may be assigned to a
different school within his/her district/superintendency each week. A
“week” shall be Monday through Friday, or shorter if the work week is less than
five (5) days.

An
Excessed Employee/ATR shall be notified no later than Friday (or the last
work-day of the week) if he/she will be assigned to a different school the
following week and, if so, to which school. An ATR who has not been notified
that he/she has been assigned to a different school by Friday shall report on
Monday, or the first work day of the work week, and for the duration of that
week, to the last school to which he/she was assigned.

Other
Applicable Provisions

For
purposes of this Rule 11(B), the terms “rotated” or “rotation” shall refer to
the assignment of certain Excessed Employees/ATRs to a different school within
his/her district/superintendency on a revolving basis.

The
parties agree that for purposes of Rule 11(B)(3), starting with the
commencement of the rotation, the DOE will assign ATRs/Excessed Employees to
schools on a temporary basis to fill positions caused by leaves or long term
absences as defined above that are not covered internally by a school through contractually
permissible methods and where a substitute teacher would otherwise be utilized
to cover for the absence or leave. The ATRs/Excessed Employees covering
leaves and long term absences will not be rotated until the completion of the
assignment unless the principal requests the removal of the ATR/Excessed
Employee prior to its completion.

The
parties agree that for purposes of Rule 11(B)(4), the date the DOE shall begin
temporarily utilizing appropriately licensed ATR/Excessed Employee will be the
date of the start of the rotation of ATRs/Excessed Employees as determined by
the DOE in a given school year.

It
is expressly understood that the obligation in this Rule 11(B) to send Excessed
Employees/ATRs for consideration for placement or to cover vacancies, leaves or
long term absences in their license area shall not apply to those Excessed
Employees/ATRs who are not in the weekly rotation (e.g., those temporarily
utilized to cover a vacancy, leave or long term absence/assignment) to cover
other vacancies, leaves or long term absences/assignments.

The
parties agree that ATRs/Excessed Employees in the Brooklyn and Staten Island
High School District (BASIS) who are rotated, shall be rotated within seniority
district but not outside the borough in which the school they were originally
excessed from is located.

It is expressly understood that the obligation in this Rule 11(B) to send
Excessed Employees/ATRs for consideration for placement or to cover vacancies,
leaves or long term absences in their license area shall only apply to BASIS
ATRs within the borough in which the school they were originally excessed from
is located.

Joint
Committee There shall be a Joint Oversight Committee comprised in equal
parts of representatives appointed by the President of the UFT and the
Chancellor of the City School District, respectively. The Joint Oversight
Committee shall meet regularly, but no less than twice each term, as defined
herein. The Joint Oversight Committee shall monitor the implementation of this
agreement to maximize cost savings and ensure proper implementation. The
DOE shall promptly provide the Joint Oversight Committee with all appropriate
data and information, so long as it is requested in a reasonable amount of
time.

The parties agree that starting in October of the school year, the Joint
Oversight Committee (the “Oversight Committee”) will meet monthly, and at each
meeting the DOE will provide reports on the number of ATRs/Excessed Employees
by license and district, the number of ATRs/Excessed Employees in long term
assignments and the number of leaves commenced at the start of each
month. The parties also agree to discuss any and all particular issues
concerning the implementation of this or Rule 11(B) at these Oversight
Committee meetings.

It is the intent of the parties to resolve issues relating to compliance with
this agreement through the operation of the Oversight Committee. The UFT
agrees that issues will be raised at the Oversight Committee prior to the
commencement of any union initiated grievance or arbitration. The DOE
agrees that should the committee agree about an issue of non compliance, the
Division of Human Resources and Talent will reach out to DOE Staff and/or the
school to ensure compliance. If a particular issue at a particular school
warrants further intervention, the Deputy Chancellor for the Division of
Talent, Labor and Innovation will intervene with appropriate DOE staff to
ensure compliance with this agreement. At any time after an issue has
been brought to the Oversight Committee, upon five (5) days written notice to
the DOE, the UFT may proceed with a union initiated grievance. The DOE
will issue a memorandum to schools outlining all the changes above and share a
draft of the memo with the UFT for consultation purposes before issuing.
This memo will be issued prior to the start of 2012-2013 school year.

Provisional
Agreement

The
parties agree that after the end of the open market hiring period, if both the
school’s principal and the Excessed Employee/ATR agree in writing, the Excessed
Employee/ATR will be staffed to a school on a provisional basis for the school
year or remainder of the school year. An agreement to be staffed
provisionally for either all or the remainder of the school year shall be in
writing and signed by both the schools’ principal and the Excessed
Employee/ATR.

An
Excessed Employee/ATR that has been provisionally staffed for the year or
remainder of the year by a school shall be treated in all respects as an
employee on the school’s table of organization for that year or remainder of
the school year.

An
employee that has been provisionally staffed by a school shall become an
Excessed Employee/ATR again at the end of that school year unless both the
employee and school principal agree in writing that he/she be hired and placed
on the schools’ table of organization in their rightful spot in seniority
order.

d. Nothing in this Agreement is intended to alter or change the
right of a principal to temporarily utilize an Excessed Employee/ATR in a
vacancy and, if both the Principal and the Excessed Employee/ATR agree in
writing at the end of the school year, to staff the employee to fill the
vacancy in the school pursuant to this Rule 11(B).

Testimonials From Some of Our Clients

“Dear Betsy,
I am forever indebted to you, Betsy, for your expert advice throughout a horrific ordeal. You worked tirelessly to prove my innocence in a 3020a proceeding that was instigated by a corrupt school district and fueled by lies. My proceedings ended with my complete exoneration, my record expunged and my immediate return to the classroom. We didn’t even need to file an appeal! Thank you, Betsy. I am now eligible to retire and enjoy the benefits you helped me to protect. God bless you and the work you do protecting the innocent
Maria G;

Alexandra F.

Dear Betsy,

I just wanted to reach out and say thank you for CONSTANTLY being there for me throughout such a tumultuous time in my life. I have been battling severe harassment at my place of work for months now, and you have advised me through every single second of it. I would not have had the strength or confidence to battle such an evil administration without your help. You have answered my phone calls from 7AM through nearly midnight with any and all of my concerns. I have called you countless times to just vent, or even cry, and you have been there with open arms to pivot my negative anticipations into positive advocacy. You have gone above and beyond your line of duty to help me, and for that, I can never repay you. You have changed the outcome of my life, and led me to justice. More importantly, you have led me to happiness again, for which I am eternally grateful. As I am getting older, I am realizing that there are many bad people in this world, but you are TRULY one of the good ones. When one finds a great person in life with their true best interest at heart, they should hold onto that and take their word as bond. My last statement truly defines you, an expert in what you do, as well as a 24 hour support system. You are amazing Betsy, and my life would truly not be the same if you had not stepped into it!!!!!

Thank you again for EVERYTHING you have done for me. Your advisement and care will be carried in my heart for the rest of my life.

Alexandra F.

Tollyne D.

After 18 years of service, the general consensus as a union member is that you cannot trust people and you have to be extremely careful who you talk to. I was brought up being told that I should be sure that the person I am speaking to is knowledgeable and to be TRUSTED, and Betsy Combier is such a person. She consistently proves that she is trustworthy, very knowledgeable and caring, time and time again.

Tollyne D.

David P.

To whom this may concern,
I want to recommend Betsy Combier as the best person you could have in your corner. From the first day I met Betsy I felt secure. I had the misfortune of having to go through a 3020a hearing and with help of Ms. Combier my job was secure, I don’t know where I would be without Betsy’s help and support. She is still assisting me with my federal case. I could not recommend Betsy any higher, she is a person of her word, and her expertise is important and necessary for everyone without any problem.
David P.

Jason R.

I met Betsy Combier approximately about 5 years ago, as a result of a recommendation from a colleague. Since then she has been an advocate of mine ever since, and has worked above and beyond my expectation. Betsy fights against the wrongdoing of public education officials in New York City. Throughout the extremely difficult arbitration, Betsy fought for my unalienable rights, even though my former principal did everything in her power to tarnish my name and damage my career.
Betsy is not an attorney yet she has the experience and knowledge that is above and beyond that of an attorney and follows through on all issues. She is truly an angel from heaven above, and a quality public defender.

Laura B.

I was charged with a 3020A in October 2016 after receiving three developing ratings in a row. I called numerous law firms as well as my union. Most people who I talked to said that I should settle because I was fighting a losing battle. A lawyer told me that anyone that says you can win a 3020A is a liar. I heard about Betsy from a teacher placed in my building who was going through the 3020A process. I hired Betsy and one of the Attorneys who works with her and her company, and won my case! Betsy saved my job and saved my life because she was emotionally supportive at a time when I needed it the most. Betsy goes above and beyond for her clients. She is readily available day and night for her clients. Betsy’s knowledge of education law is exceptional and she was a great help to my attorney. Betsy is relentless and fights hard for her clients.

ADVOCATZ

Contact me with a concern or issue

I assist anyone who needs help, so email me your problem to start the ball rolling! I am a teacher/parent advocate, and I am the editor/writer for this blog and the website parentadvocates.org. I also write about court corruption on my blog "NYC Court Corruption". I am interested in random injustice and the criminalizing of innocent people. If you want to chat you may email me at: betsy.combier@gmail.com and I'm on twitter and have a facebook page too. I'm not an attorney and do not give legal advice.

If you want to talk with me about your 3020-a charges, I consult and go over your case without charge. No fee.

And, in response to the lies of certain individuals who resent my work, the truth is that all conversations are confidential and I do not tape secretly.

Betsy Combier

My Thoughts and Raison d'etre

This blog is about the denial of Constitutional rights by the Mayor, the New York City Department of Education and the Chancellor, New York State and Federal Courts, New York State legislature, and the United Federation of Teachers (UFT), as well as PACs and all parties participating in the business of public school education in New York City, to harm and in neglect of parents, children, and staff of public schools in the five boroughs. These thoughts are not simply mindless conclusions reached out of thin air, but a result of 14 years of research into the NYC DOE and the Courts as a reporter and paralegal.
I am an advocate of Unions and union rights, public schools and charters, and learning online as well as outside of the classroom. I cannot and do not support anyone, whether they be union management, government, private members of the political or legal system, or simply retired teachers with an agenda, if he or she tramples, discards, or rebuffs anyone's individual civil rights. As a reporter, journalist, advocate, researcher and paralegal, I have created this blog to inform the public about my experience working for the UFT and being the parent of four daughters who went through the public school system in NYC, as well as examine issues that flow from the massive denial of due process rights that I saw and have documented. The two most important points you should remember: first, everyone at the New York City Board/Department of Education and all Union bigs are motivated by power and money, and looking good. If anyone dares to blow the whistle on these racketeers, retaliation follows, so be a strategist; second, I am not an Attorney and nothing I write or say is legal advice, simply my thoughts. Take 'em or leave 'em.
Betsy Combier, Editor
NYC Rubber Room Reporter
http://nycrubberroomreporter.blogspot.com
New York Court Corruption
http://newyorkcourtcorruption.blogspot.com
Parentadvocates.org
http://www.parentadvocates.org
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/betsy.combier
Twitter: http://twitter.com/BetsyCombier
The NYC Public Voice
http://nycpublicvoice.blogspot.com/betsy.combier@gmail.com
Lawline July 27, 2011
http://www.teachem.com/lawlinetv/learn/lawline-tv-teachers-unions-the-last-in-first-out-rule/

Principal Anne Seifullah changes her image so that she can keep her job amidst sexting and trysts in the school, Robert Wagner Secondary Sch...

Google + Rubber Room Community

FAITH

When we walk to the edge of all the light we have and take the step into the darkness of the unknown, we must believe that one of two things will happen. There will be something solid for us to stand on or we will be taught to fly. Patrick Overton

Truth Seeks Light - Lies Seek Shadows

sayin like it is

Actions Have Consequences

Writing as Music

Rubber Room teachers wish me a happy birthday (2006)

"Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all."

- Aristotle

Important Numbers

Amy Arundel (ATR Point Person) 212-510-6468

UFT www.uft.org

OPI (Problem Code) 1-718-935-2666

UFT Certification Services 1-212-420-1830

Teachers REtirement System 1-888-869-2877

Mandated Reporters 1-800-635-1522

Staten Island UFT 1-718-605-1400

Brooklyn UFT 1-718-852-4900

Bronx UFT 1-718-379-6200

Manhattan UFT 1-212-598-6800

Queens UFT 1-718-275-4400

Rubber Room Satire

The Labor Movement

The Teaching Equation

We Can Work Out Our Differences

The E-Accountability Foundation

The E-Accountability Foundation brings you this blog which highlights issues that have or should be read by people interested in civil rights, and accountability. The E-Accountability Foundation is a 501(C)3 organization that holds people accountable for their actions online and, through the internet, seeks to bring justice to anyone who has been harmed without reason. We give the'A for Accountability' Awardto those who are willing to blow the whistle on unjust, misleading, or false actions and claims of the politico-educational complex in order to bring about educational reform in favor of children of all races, intellectual ability and economic status.

AddThis

Performance Management - Office of Labor Relations

From Betsy Combier

The NYC Office of Labor Relations, with the support of the UFT, has issued to principals a document called"Performance Management" on how to get rid of an incompetent teacher. Who is an "incompetent teacher"? Anyone the NYC Department of Education wants to remove from the system because he/she is too senior (makes too much money), is disabled (and therefore cannot be deemed factory-perfect) and/or is other impaired (is a whistleblower, cannot be intimidated, is ethnically challenged - not the 'right' race, etc).

Candace R. McLaren

Director, Office of Special Investigations (OSI)

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Polo Colon

"Rubber Room"

(1) a space where a worker subject to a disciplinary hearing or other administrative action waits and does no work; generally, a place or personal mind-set of isolation.(2) a literal reference to a padded cell, which is, according to the New Oxford American Dictionary, “a room in a psychiatric hospital with padded walls to prevent violent patients from injuring themselves.”from Double-Tongued Dictionary http://www.doubletongued.org/index.php/dictionary/rubber_room/

"Rubberization"

The word "rubberization" is a new word that is used to describe the process of assigning and paying people to sit and do nothing in a drab room away from their place of employment while their employers make up charges that allege sexual or corporal misconduct without any facts upon which to base the allegation on.

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Theresa Europe, NYC BOE ATU Director

Robin Greenfield

Deputy Counsel to the NYC DOE

UFT Pres. Mike Mulgrew and NYC Mayor Mike Bloomberg

UFT umbrella pals

New York State Supreme Court Judge Manuel Mendez

ATR CONNECT

Tenured Teachers who are found to be guilty of misconduct or incompetency at 3020-a but are not terminated, who have blown the whistle on the misconduct of politically favored NYC Department of Education employees, and/or who are simply disliked for any reason can suddenly find themselves in the ATR ("Absent Teacher Reserve") pool - employees without rights or voices, and without chapter leader union representation.

This new group of people are the "new" rubber roomers without representation at the UFT and denied the protection of the Collective Bargaining Agreement, because basically they have been pushed out of their jobs unfairly and under color of law by Mayor Bloomberg and the Chief Executives of the Department of Education who call themselves "Chancellors", "Network Leaders", "Superintendents", etc., consistently without any facts or evidence to support the false claims.

A group of teachers who are, or were, made into ATRs, ATR Polo Colon, and I, Betsy Combier, an advocate for transparency and labor/employment rights, have joined together to expose the denial of due process, civil and human rights by chiefs of the NYC Department of Education (NYC DOE), certain arbitrators at 3020-a, leaders of the United Federation of Teachers (UFT), the "investigators" -agents who work for the Special Commissioner of Investigation (SCI), Office of Special Investigation (OSI), and the Office of Equal Opportunity (OEO) - and the Attorneys who work for the New York United Teachers (NYSUT), and the New York Law Department (Corporation Counsel).

In order to protect the safety of those who join this group to promote an end to the "Rubberization" process described on this blog since 2007, names of those who tell their stories will, for now, remain anonymous if the person so desires, and Polo and I will be the gatekeepers. So if you are an ATR, or know a story involving an ATR or someone re-assigned or about to go into a 3020-a, please use the email address advocatz77@gmail.com and give us your contact information. We will protect your anonymity and hold onto your privacy.

Betsy Combier and Polo Colon, Editors

FAITH When we walk to the edge of all the light we have and take the step into the darkness of the unknown, we must believe that one of two things will happen. There will be something solid for us to stand on or we will be taught to fly.

Patrick Overton

We have forty million reasons for failure but not a single excuse.Rudyard Kipling (1865-1936)

The Re-Assignment Overview by Betsy Combier

The New York City Board of Education decided in 2002 to rid the public school system of staff who interfered with their takeover and control. The criteria for a "good teacher" is now, more often than not, a "silent teacher", a person who never asks questions, is younger than 40, is making a salary below $50,000, does not care about kids and what they learn, or whether or not money (books, supplies, equipment, etc) is missing. When a teacher or staff member of a school dares to do the right thing and speaks out about wrong-doing - this person is often called a "whistleblower" or "flamethrower" - or, simply is not liked for any reason by the Principal/NYC personnel, suddenly he/she is accused of something by somebody ("given a label of "A", "B", "C", and so on) and whisked away to a drab room called a temporary re-assignment center or "rubber room". Members of the offices of the Special Commissioner of Investigation or the Office of Special Investigations then start work on building a case against the person to justify their being thrown in prison, declared "unfit for duty", or, as Mr. Joel Klein has said, characterized as "guilty of sexual activities and corporal punishment" against the children of New York City.The stories of the people I have met who sit every day in the 8 rubber rooms of NYC prove to me that Mr. Klein is very wrong about his assessment, and this blog is created to prove it to you.

Puppy Snooze

US Department of Labor ELAWS

Aeri Pang, Gotcha Squad Attorney

Attorney Pang, red dress, now chief Attorney For New York State Supreme Court Judge Cynthia Kern

New York State Supreme Court Judge Cynthia Kern

NYC EdStats You Can Use

$12.5 billion: Annual New York City Department of Education (DOE) budget (2002)

$21 billion: Annual New York City DOE budget (2009)
1,719: Number officials employed by the DOE central administration in June 2002

2,442: Number of officials employed by the central administration as of November 2008

2: Number of DOE officials earning more than $180,000 per year in 2004.

22: Number of DOE officials earning more than $180,000 per year in 2007.

5: Number of DOE public relations staffers in 2003.

23: Number of DOE public relations staffers in 2008.

944: Number of contracts approved by DOE in 2008, at a total cost of $1.9 billion.

20: Percentage of contracts that exceeded estimated cost by at least 25 percent.

$67.5 million: Annual budget of Project Arts, a decade-old program that was the sole source of dedicated funding for arts education. It was eliminated in 2007.

86: Percentage of principals who said in a 2008 poll that they were unable to provide a quality education because of excessive class sizes in their schools.

100,000: Number of seats DOE plans to provide for charter school students by 2012.

25,000: Number of seats DOE plans to build under 2010 to 2014 capital plan.

66,895: Number of K-3 school-children in classes of 25 or more during the 2008-09 school year.

15,440: Average number of seats per year built during the last six years of the Rudolph Giuliani administration.

10,895: Average number of seats per year built during the first six years of the Bloomberg administration.

27.2: Percentage of newly hired teachers in 2001-02 who were Black.

14.1: Percentage of newly hired teachers in 2006-07 who were Black.

53.3: Percentage of newly hired teachers in 2001-02 who were white.

65.5: Percentage of newly hired teachers in 2006-07 who were white.

76: Percentage of white and Asian students who performed better than the average Black and Latino students in 8th grade English Language Arts (ELA) in 2003.

75: Percentage of white and Asian students who performed better than the average Black and Hispanic students in 8th grade ELA in 2008.

77: Percentage of white and Asian students who performed better than the average Black and Hispanic 8th graders in math in 2003.

81: Percentage of white and Asian students who performed better than the average Black and Hispanic 8th graders in math in 2008.

54: Percentage of New York City public school parents who disapproved of Mayor Bloomberg’s handling of education, according to a March 2009 Quinnipiac poll.

Sources: New York City Council, New York City Comptroller’s Office, New York Daily News, New York Post, Eduwonkette, Quinnipiac Institute, Black Educator, Class Size Matters, New York City Schools Under Bloomberg and Klein.

Betsy Combier and NYSUT lawyer Chris Callagy

The New York City Whistle Award

NYC Whistlers, Winners of the NYC Whistle Award

...are those individuals in New York City who are willing to whistleblow unjust, misleading, or false actions and claims of the politico-educational complex in order to bring about educational reform in favor of children of all races, intellectual ability and economic status. Whistlers ask questions that need to be asked, such as "where is the money?" and "Why does it have to be this way?" and they never give up.

These people have withstood adversity and have held those who seem not to believe in honesty, integrity and compassion accountable for their actions.

Congratulations, and keep up the good work!

Betsy Combier

Special Commissioner of Investigation Richard Condon

Condon "qualified" for his current post after Bloomberg lowered standards; who will leash him?

A great teacher

After being interviewed by the school administration, the prospective teacher said: 'Let me see if I've got this right.

'You want me to go into that room with all those kids, correct their disruptive behavior, observe them for signs of abuse, monitor their dress habits, censor their T-shirt messages, and instill in them a love for learning.

'You want me to check their backpacks for weapons, wage war on drugs and sexually transmitted diseases, and raise their sense of self esteem and personal pride.

'You want me to teach them patriotism and good citizenship, sportsmanship and fair play, and how to register to vote, balance a checkbook, and apply for a job 'You want me to check their heads for lice, recognize signs of antisocial behavior, and make sure that they all pass the final exams.

'You also want me to provide them with an equal education regardless of their handicaps, and communicate regularly with their parents in English, Spanish or any other language, by letter, telephone, newsletter, and report card.

'You want me to do all this with a piece of chalk, a blackboard, a bulletinboard, a few books, a big smile, and a starting salary that qualifies me for food stamps. 'You want me to do all this and then you tell me. . . I CAN'T PRAY?

NYC Police Commissioner Ray Kelly

Joel Klein's famous statement about rubber room teachers and staff

On November 27, 2006, temporarily re-assigned teacher (TRT) Polo Colon asked Joel Klein, the "pretend" Chancellor of the NYC public school system, if he had voted to terminate teachers at the secret Executive Session held just before the public meeting of the Panel For Educational Policy.Mr. Klein answered,"We did not vote to terminate you. We did vote to terminate a teacher in executive Session...in fact, we voted to terminate two teachers. It's perfectly consistent with the law.Many teachers have been charged with sexual activities and some are charged with corporal punishment...I have no interest in removing people who are qualified to teach, I can assure you, because I dont get any return...and in fact, I have complained publicly about how long this process drags out. But our first concern will always be and, as a former lawyer and somebody who clerked on the United States Supreme Court I will tell you, there is no violation of due process whatsoever..."- extracted from the audiotape of the PEP meeting bought by Betsy Combier after filing a FOIL request to the NYC BOE

Rally November 2008 at Tweed

November 26, 2007 Candelight Vigil

Thousands of teachers and school staff members rally at Tweed

A Review of Battling Corruption in America's Public Schools by Betsy Combier

Lydia Segal's book puts the NYC, Chicago, and California Departments of Education on notice....we who have read this book know more about how the system is not there for our kids than "you" want us to know. Lydia Segal's book Battling Corruption in America's Public Schools changes the public school reform movement forever. We can no longer assume that more money allocated to our schools will "fix" the disaster that is our public school system.

Lydia Segal draws on her 10 years of undercover investigation and research in over five urban school districts, including the three largest, New York City, Los Angeles, and Chicago, and the two most decentralized, Houston and Edmonton, Canada, to provide, in her new book Battling Corruption in America's Public Schools, the details of the corruption, theft, fraud, and patronage that has overrun our public school establishment for several decades. There is no question that anyone who is interested in school reform -this means anyone who pays taxes, is a parent or guardian of a child attending school and/or who works toward a goal of establishing an education system that puts children first - must read this book. Ms. Segal's research and information on the education establishment's 'dark' side outrages the reader, and incites us to demand change. Her book therefore, is much more than a book, it is a call to action. We cannot be bystanders any longer to the systemic abuse she so vividly describes, and we will never be able to listen in the same way ever again to school Principals, Superintendents, school custodians or district board members as they request more money "to help the children."

The book's detailed reports on the corruption and crime in our public schools, supported by 52 pages of interview notes, references and specific examples, provide irrefutable evidence that the current failures of our nation's public schools are not due to the lack of money but the impossibility of getting the money to the children who need it and for whom the money is allocated in the first place. Recent statistics show that students of all ages are not learning what they need to know, schools are overcome with violence, teachers are demoralized, and yet billions of dollars are literally shovelled into the system every year. The New York City school system receives more than $16 billion every year; Los Angeles, $7 billion; and Chicago, $3.6 billion. Where does this money go? We have all asked this question as we have walked through school hallways dodging the paint falling off the walls and ceilings, watching our children sitting on broken chairs, using bathrooms without running water or toilet paper, and struggling to achieve their personal best without the services and resources they are supposed to have. Battling Corruption in America's Public Schools is the first book ever to systematically examine school waste and corruption and how to fight it. Ms. Segal, an undercover school investigator turned law professor, documents where the money goes, how waste and fraud embedded in the operation of large school bureaucracies siphon money from classrooms, distort educational priorities, block initiatives, and what we can do to bring badly-needed change. She describes in detail how only a small percentage of the money allocated to students in our public schools actually gets used by them due to corruption and waste, and how city school systems scoring lowest on standardized tests tend to have the biggest criminal records and most payroll padding. Coding problems, the procurement process, compartmentalization and opacity of information leave administrators with only two options: good corruption (which ultimately helps the kids) and bad corruption (which never helps anyone but the perpetrator and his/her allies and accomplices). Indeed, the system fights those who try the good corruption route.

Ms. Segal argues that the problem is not usually bad people, but a bad system that focuses on process at the expense of results. Decades of rules and regulations along with layers of top-down supervision make it so hard to do business with school systems that they encourage the very fraud and waste they were designed to curb. She tells us about how the "godfathers" and "godmothers" (the school board members) obtain jobs for their "pieces" in order to protect the systemic waste and fraud from being dismantled or exposed. Fortunately, she writes, there are good people involved in the corruption as well who must violate the rules in order to get their jobs done. Nonetheless, absurdities abound: school systems following rules to save every penny spend thousands of dollars hunting down checks as small as $25; it takes so long to pay vendors for their work that some have to bribe school officials to move their checks along; caring Principals who want to fix leaky toilets may have to pay workers under the table because submitting a work order through the central office could, and often does, take years. Meanwhile, those who pilfer from classrooms get away with it because the pyramidal structure of large districts makes schools inherently difficult to oversee. What makes Battling Corruption in America's Public Schools a must-read is not only the fascinating - and depressing - details of the systemic wrong-doing but also Ms. Segal's suggestions for reform, based on the proven track records of school systems across North America that have successfully reduced waste and fraud and have pushed more resources into schools.

The pathology of the corruption suggests the remedy, Ms. Segal says, which is decentralization of power into the schools and the hands of the Principals. Distilling what successful school systems have done, Segal advocates new forms of oversight that do not clog up school systems and recommends giving principals more discretion over their school budgets as well as holding them accountable for job performance. She argues for "autonomy in exchange for performance accountability" as part of a bold, far-reaching plan for reclaiming our schools. Her conclusion is logical and convincing. Everyone who reads this book will find his or her perception of public school education changed forever. We cannot accept any longer that a generation of children has been abused by a system that is so full of greed and corruption without screaming "stop!" and "Your game is up!"

Segal reveals how systemic waste and fraud siphon millions of dollars from urban classrooms and shows how money is lost in systems that focus on process rather than on results, as well as how regulations established to curb waste and fraud provide perverse incentives for new forms of both. Anyone who is interested in school reform--this means anyone who pays taxes, is a parent or guardian of a child attending school, and/or who works toward a goal of establishing an education system that puts children first--must read this book. --

Lydia G. Segal is Associate Professor of Criminal Law and Public Administration at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, City University of New York.

The NYC BOE FAMIS Online Tour

The FAMIS Portal Online Tour provides an overview and demonstration of the FAMIS Portal. Computer speakers or headphones are recommended. Choose an item of interest below, or click on the Introduction to proceed through all of the modules in sequence.

About Me

Reporter, paralegal, advocate,I will investigate, search on the internet and in all data bases for information that will help a person in need of resolution to a problem.I believe in substantive and procedural due process for all individuals, groups and organizations and trademarked the term "e-accountability" to describe the purpose of my work. I am the parent of four daughters.

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Testimonials From Some of Our Clients

Dear Betsy,
I am forever indebted to you, Betsy, for your expert advice throughout a horrific ordeal. You worked tirelessly to prove my innocence in a 3020a proceeding that was instigated by a corrupt school district and fueled by lies. My proceedings ended with my complete exoneration, my record expunged and my immediate return to the classroom. We didn’t even need to file an appeal! Thank you, Betsy. I am now eligible to retire and enjoy the benefits you helped me to protect. God bless you and the work you do protecting the innocent.-Maria G.
To whom this may concern,
I want to recommend Betsy Combier as the best person you could have in your corner. From the first day I met Betsy I felt secure. I had the misfortune of having to go through a 3020a hearing and with help of Ms. Combier my job was secure, I don’t know where I would be without Betsy’s help and support. She is still assisting me with my federal case. I could not recommend Betsy any higher, she is a person of her word, and her expertise is important and necessary for everyone with any problem-David P.
I met Betsy Combier approximately about 5 years ago, as a result of a recommendation from a colleague. Since then she has been an advocate of mine ever since, and has worked above and beyond my expectation. Betsy fights against the wrongdoing of public education officials in New York City. Throughout the extremely difficult arbitration, Betsy fought for my unalienable rights, even though my former principal did everything in her power to tarnish my name and damage my career.
Betsy is not an attorney yet she has the experience and knowledge that is above and beyond that of an attorney and follows through on all issues. She is truly an angel from heaven above, and a quality public defender.-Jason R.
I was charged with a 3020A in October 2016 after receiving three developing ratings in a row. I called numerous law firms as well as my union. Most people who I talked to said that I should settle because I was fighting a losing battle. A lawyer told me that anyone that says you can win a 3020A is a liar. I heard about Betsy from a teacher placed in my building who was going through the 3020A process. I hired Betsy and one of the Attorneys who works with her and her company, and won my case! Betsy saved my job and saved my life because she was emotionally supportive at a time when I needed it the most. Betsy goes above and beyond for her clients. She is readily available day and night for her clients. Betsy’s knowledge of education law is exceptional and she was a great help to my attorney. Betsy is relentless and fights hard for her clients. -Laura B.

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